Located atop the gently sloping coastal landscape of Victoria's Southern Ocean, Anglesea House blends family living with the simple minimalism of seaside beach houses. Drawing upon refined post-war modernist forms and the nostalgia of Australian beach shacks, Eckersley Architects have created a home that encourages connection and the abundance of a large family, whilst offering moments of reprieve and retreat.
The 720-square-metre site previously houses a 1970's two-storey home, which no longer accommodated the needs of the clients. Despite its orientation towards the ocean, the home was dark inside, failed to connect with the back garden or landscape, and did not provide suitable accommodation for a large family. Additionally, the home faced issues surrounding privacy and safety as it perched precariously at the crest of cliffside.
Eckersley endeavoured to reinvent coastal living for their clients whilst adopting a deeply personal approach to the project, given that the clients are the parents of Architects' Director, Tom. The design of the new home centred around bringing multiple generations of the same family together under one roof, whilst maximising comfortability and functionality when guests were away. Additionally, the clients were inspired to rekindle memories formed at a previous beach house, that adopted a rudimentary shack layout, and had some of the bedrooms accessible exclusively via an outdoor deck. In order to achieve the goal of a flexible family destination, Eckersley Architects decided upon a tiered design that divided the home into distinct areas.
The home's entrance is located on the ground level, and opens into a bunk room that doubles as a rumpus room for grandchildren, as well as a shared bathroom. Moving to the first floor, an open plan kitchen, dining and living area encouraged congregation of the family around the kitchen's concrete island bench. The open plan format continues outside, as the entertaining areas spill onto the generous main deck facing the ocean. On this floor, the home offers three bedrooms (including a guest bedroom) and a master bedroom and ensuite. Each bedroom boasts private garden views, weaving peaceful moments of sanctuary throughout the home, whilst the main suite has direct terrace access.
The new home, approximately 350 square metres in area, adopts a natural, raw material palette in reverence for its coastal context, combining charred timber, timber and sandstone to create a robust, tactile experience inside and out. In order to maximise space and light, the home adopts a H-plan, with two courtyards on either side and a central courtyard in the centre. The primary courtyard provides protection from strong coastal windows, whilst maximising panoramic views.
The parred back design of the home is complemented through a limited material palette, which includes spotted gum ceilings, solid French oak for kitchen joinery and limestone flooring throughout, which extends outside onto the courtyard terraces and walkway connecting two of the secondary bedrooms. The main courtyard garden is pivotal to the design of Anglesea House and was designed by Eckersley Garden Architects. The materiality of the interior is adopted for the exterior, to blur the divides between inside and out. Natural stone is arranged in crazy pavers in the courtyard to enhance the homes mid-century feel, whilst three mature olive trees add tranquillity and warmth.
The home settles lightly upon the land, seemingly emerging from the site, with its form lightly tilted towards the horizon to emphasise its environmental context. This genuine, tactile connection to place is further emphasised through the careful and thoughtful incorporation of passive energy solutions and low-maintenance, sustainable materials. The home is fully electric, relying upon an array of hidden solar panels and battery storage to minimise its impact upon the natural environment. Eckersley Architects noted that these sustainable interventions are generally considered standard across their builds now, and that the new challenge is to ensure these fixtures are discreet and seamless. These measures include the homes total disconnect from gas and adoption of high-performance glazing, which make sustainability feel inherent rather than granted.
Anglesea House by Eckersley Architects demonstrates the potential of Australian coastal architecture; that which balances connection to landscape, sustainability, functionality and aesthetics, all whilst fostering connection and redefining the family home.
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PROJECT DETAILS
Architecture: Eckersley Architects
Location: Anglesea, Victoria
Photographer: Tasha Tylee
Builder: Poulsen Builders
Landscape Designer: Eckersley Garden Architecture
Landscaping: Suf Edge Rendering
Joinery: Living Space Joinery
